259:
field crew started recording the Dixon
Brothers in Charlotte, and over the next few years a total of 61 songs were released. The Dixon Brothers' records sold well enough that they were able to record during five separate sessions for RCA Victor from 1936 – 1938. During two sessions in 1937 and 1938,
226:
In 1929 Dixon tried his hand at composition, writing a poem about a school house fire. When Howard and his mother noted that the words could be sung to a popular hymn at the time, "Life's
Railway to Heaven", Dixon began devoting his spare time to composing. His writing often drew on first-hand
276:
was reached. Dixon was granted ownership of "Wreck on the
Highway", a third of the existing $ 5,000 royalties, and an "undisclosed percentage" of future royalties. Dixon later adopted Acuff's title, and "Wreck on the Highway" became his "best-known and arguably his greatest composition".
202:
at the age of eight. Dixon's family and friends encouraged homemade music and he quickly picked up the traditional and sentimental songs they sang. A family friend and school teacher gave Dixon violin lessons and by the time he was 14 he could also play the guitar. During
295:
factory, but none were forthcoming and they moved back to East
Rockingham. With Dixon's musical career all but over, he continued working at the Aleo Mill until 1951 when he was forced to retire due to his deteriorating eyesight. Dixon and his wife then moved to
260:
Dorsey recorded as a duet with his wife
Beatrice. One of his songs, "I Didn't Hear Anybody Pray", about a fatal car accident and recorded by the Dixon brothers in 1938, was recorded as "The Wreck on the Highway" by country musician
223:, in 1927 to work at the Aleo Mill. Dixon's parents and Nancy and Howard also moved to East Rockingham to join him. There Dixon married fellow mill worker Beatrice Lucele Moody, later having four children with her.
198:, Darlington Cotton Manufacturing Company. Dixon left school at the age of twelve to start working at the mill; his younger brother Howard started at the age of ten, and their sister Nancy began working there as a
231:
during labor unrest in the early 1930s. Dixon and his brother also started performing as a duo at local functions around
Rockingham, with Dorsey playing guitar and Howard playing fiddle. In 1931 country musician
227:
experiences, particularly the working conditions in the mills. During this period he produced songs like "Weaver's Life", "Spinning Room Blues" and "Weave Room Blues", some of which were sung by mill
300:, but they separated in 1953 and he returned to East Rockingham without her. Dixon's brother, Howard continued working in the mills until he died on the job following a heart attack in 1961.
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in 1942. Acuff could not remember where he knew the song from, but claimed it as his own. "Wreck on the
Highway" became a national country music hit, but Dixon received no
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1184:
1066:
Huber, Patrick; Drowne, Kathleen. "I Don't Want Nothin' 'Bout my Life Wrote Out, Because I Had it Too Rough in Life: Dorsey Dixon's
Autobiographical Writings".
240:
and Dorsey played his guitar with a "unique finger-picking style". Interest in the duo grew in 1934 when they started performing regularly on J. W. Fincher's
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350:, to live with his son, the Reverend Dorsey Dixon, Jr., where he remained until his death of heart failure at the age 70 on April 18, 1968. In 2000 the
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published autobiographical writings of Dixon entitled "I Don't Want Nothin' 'Bout my Life Wrote Out, Because I Had it Too Rough in Life".
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passed through East
Rockingham and so impressed the Dixon brothers that they changed their performances. Howard switched from fiddle to
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Russell, Tony, and Bob Pinson. Country Music
Records: A Discography, 1921–1942 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004), p. 321
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in the early 20th century. They also persuaded him to start performing again and invited him to play at the 1963
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Expecting further settlements the Dixon family moved to New York City in 1947 where Dixon worked in a
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introduced Dixon to the audience. Later Dixon was also asked to have his music recorded for the
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1091:– contains the lyrics and an audio file of the song performed by Dorsey Dixon.
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Bruce Springsteen: two hearts : the definitive biography, 1972–2003
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and Eugene Earle visited Dixon and helped him record a 19-track album,
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Interest in Dixon's music was revived in the late 1950s by students of
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322:. The title track was a new composition by Dixon that was about the
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Linthead stomp: the creation of country music in the Piedmont South
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Huber, Patrick (2008). "The Dixon Brothers, Howard and Dorsey".
170:", which resulted in a copyright dispute with country musician
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The Dixon Brothers Complete Recorded Works Vol. 3 (1937–38)
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The Dixon Brothers Complete Recorded Works Vol. 4 (1938)
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The Dixon Brothers Complete Recorded Works Vol. 2 (1937)
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The Dixon Brothers Complete Recorded Works Vol. 1 (1936)
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textile industry's "shameful abuse and exploitation" of
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who spent much of his life working in textile mills in
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657:4-CD set with 164 page book by Patrick Huber
624:The Dixon Brothers with The Callahan Brothers
463:The Dixon Brothers Vol. 3: Early Sacred Songs
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242:Crazy Water Crystals Saturday Night Jamboree
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444:The Dixon Bros.: Ramblin' & Gamblin'
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645:The Dixon Brothers: A Blessing To People
352:Center for the Study of Southern Culture
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190:Dixon was born on October 14, 1897, in
154:songwriter and musician. He was also a
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1120:People from Darlington, South Carolina
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454:notes by Pat Conte with David Crisp
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398:Dixon Brothers, notes by Pat Conte
178:textile industry's exploitation of
1038:University of North Carolina Press
14:
166:. Dixon's best known songs were "
1190:American male singer-songwriters
1165:20th-century American guitarists
16:American songwriter and musician
1200:Singer-songwriters from Florida
1170:People from Plant City, Florida
221:East Rockingham, North Carolina
1180:Country musicians from Florida
1175:Guitarists from South Carolina
1089:Documenting the American South
998:Wirz, Stefan (April 4, 2017).
972:Wirz, Stefan (April 4, 2017).
714:Documenting the American South
272:against Acuff, and in 1946 an
1:
603:How Can a Broke Man Be Happy?
340:Archive of American Folk Song
1000:"Dixon Brothers Discography"
974:"Country Turtle Discography"
209:Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
1130:American country guitarists
182:in the early 20th century.
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1085:"The Wreck on the Highway"
281:also wrote a song called "
192:Darlington, South Carolina
140:Darlington, South Carolina
54:Darlington, South Carolina
1140:American country fiddlers
710:"Dorsey Dixon, 1897–1968"
482:The Dixon Brothers Vol. 4
425:The Dixon Brothers Vol. 2
407:The Dixon Brothers Vol. 1
250:Charlotte, North Carolina
217:Lancaster, South Carolina
1135:American male guitarists
274:out-of-court settlement
1070:(Summer 2000): 94–101.
594:notes by Keith Briggs
575:notes by Keith Briggs
556:notes by Keith Briggs
537:notes by Keith Briggs
290:Union City, New Jersey
95:Musician, songwriter,
1155:Traditional musicians
492:notes by John Norris
473:notes by John Morris
332:Newport Folk Festival
311:. In the early 1960s
248:, a radio station in
936:"Babies in the Mill"
863:"The Dixon Brothers"
435:notes by Ivan Tribe
334:, where folk singer
283:Wreck on the Highway
168:Wreck on the Highway
136:Dorsey Murdock Dixon
36:Dorsey Murdock Dixon
708:Denatale, Douglas.
358:Discographical data
348:Plant City, Florida
344:Library of Congress
219:, before moving to
144:Plant City, Florida
138:(October 14, 1897,
71:Plant City, Florida
1150:Old-time musicians
859:Chadbourne, Eugene
742:Chadbourne, Eugene
501:Babies in the Mill
386:Beyond Black Smoke
320:Babies in the Mill
146:) was an American
142:– April 18, 1968,
1068:Southern Cultures
1051:978-0-8078-3225-7
746:"Dorsey M. Dixon"
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211:in Darlington as
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940:Folk Archive
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196:textile mill
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112:Years active
66:(1968-04-18)
25:Dorsey Dixon
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1115:1968 deaths
1110:1897 births
1040:. pp.
1022:Cited works
822:Marsh, Dave
650:Bear Family
633:JSPCD 77113
336:Pete Seeger
328:child labor
255:In 1936 an
205:World War I
180:child labor
1104:Categories
960:Huber 2008
923:Huber 2008
911:Huber 2008
899:Huber 2008
887:Huber 2008
809:Huber 2008
797:Huber 2008
782:Huber 2008
770:Huber 2008
666:References
342:at the US
257:RCA Victor
156:millworker
125:RCA Victor
97:millworker
47:1897-10-14
32:Birth name
832:Routledge
636:4-CD set
612:ACMCD4022
591:DOCD-8049
572:DOCD-8048
553:DOCD-8047
534:DOCD-8046
506:Testament
309:work song
305:hillbilly
298:Baltimore
266:royalties
262:Roy Acuff
213:signalmen
186:Biography
172:Roy Acuff
1009:April 4,
983:April 4,
867:AllMusic
824:(2004).
750:AllMusic
654:BCD16817
588:Document
569:Document
550:Document
530:Document
489:OHCS-179
470:OHCS-178
432:OHCS-164
414:OHCS-151
324:Southern
229:strikers
176:Southern
148:old-time
945:June 2,
872:June 2,
755:June 2,
719:June 2,
608:Acrobat
451:CT-6002
395:CT-6000
374:Number
270:lawsuit
200:spinner
116:1930–64
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510:T-3301
440:c.1984
377:Notes
371:Label
368:Title
121:Labels
78:Genres
382:1973?
365:Year
293:rayon
160:North
1046:ISBN
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403:1983
307:and
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150:and
61:Died
41:Born
1087:at
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629:JSP
246:WBT
244:on
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